Thursday, September 28, 2006

Thursday A.M. Quickie:Everything *but* T.O.

Cards sidestep chokery (for now): Cards fans breathe SLIGHTLY easier after beating the Padres – because the Astros won again, too. (Of COURSE they did.) With 4 to play, the Cards are up 1.5 games. Still plenty of time to choke on it.

I'm with some other sports columnists and fans: It's Clemens' fault.

Dodgers toying with Phillies fans emotions: The Phillies win, the Dodgers win. The Phils are still 1 GB LA for the NL Wild Card. I can't think of a fan east or north (or south) of LA who wants to see the Dodgers make the playoffs ahead of the Phillies.

AL Central Watch: Tigers lose, but Twins can't capitalize. Considering the division runner-up gets the Yankees in the first round of the ALDS, perhaps they could play with a bit more urgency.

Pedro: Questionable for NLDS? After last night's rocking (8H, 7R, 2HR, 2.2 IP), Pedro might not pitch in the NLDS.

That's too bad, because that might be the only playoff series the pitching-poor Mets get.

Even in the weak-ass NL, the Mets could end up as this year's version of the team that finishes with the league's best record, but blows it in the LDS. Despite (or maybe because of) Pedro.

Yankees set ALDS pitching: Wang (19 wins), Mussina and Unit in Games 1, 2 and 3. Between that and the absolutely sick lineup, they should be considered the favorite to win the World Series.

(Who else is OK with Wang being a Top 3 finisher in the AL Cy Young race? Who would have thought he'd become the team's ace?)

Managerial notes: Frank Robinson out in D.C.? If I was Stan Kasten, I would out-bid the Cubs for Joe Girardi. Felipe Alou done in SF? If I was the Marlins, I would bring him in to replace Girardi. Robinson? Sorry, guy. And round and round she goes...

Shaun Alexander still hurt: He got a second opinion, but it was the same as the first. Here's another second opinion that confirms the first one: Shoulda skipped the Madden cover.

Bonzi Wells to the Rockets: Two points to make here:

(1) Wells turned down an offer of 5Y/$36M to stay with the Kings, a playoff team, to take a 2Y/$5M offer to go to the Rockets, a non-playoff team. Get a new agent, man.

(2) Wonder how Wells is going to enjoy playing with a gunner like T-Mac? Bonzi will be the third option in that offense, behind McGrady and Yao. Hope he likes rebounding as much as his stats indicate he does.

Odell Thurman banned for the season: Hmm, perhaps it's because he didn't understand the concept of "staying clean while already suspended." How many games for Chris Henry puking out the car window?

Anyone got a pint of "lean?" Maybe I should ask the Chargers' Terrence Kiel. What's "lean?" A potent cocktail of cough syrup and soft drinks. Kiel was busted for trying to ship cough syrup back to Texas, where apparently "lean" is the new Grey Goose.

CFB Tonight: Here's your chance to see No. 2 Auburn in a quality game -- AT South Carolina and the Ol' Ball Coach. The Gamecocks aren't what they used to be, but they are still a "name" opponent on national TV in primetime.

With a dominant display on national TV, there's a chance that Auburn could pick up some first-place votes -- given the trouble OhioState is projected to have at Iowa on Saturday.

Meanwhile, not many people will be watching, but you can catch unbeaten TCU – nation's longest winning streak! – on Versus (nee OLN) against (or "versus") BYU. The Cougars aren't much of a stumbling block for TCU en route to an unbeaten season; let's judge them on how impressively they win, though, not on the schedule alone.

The new BlogPoll is up: Here's the link, and you can imagine that I'm tweaked that Michigan flip-flopped with Florida at 5 and 6 from the week before. (And there's no love for TCU. Haters!)

Tomorrow, I'll have the usual Friday mayhem of a complete Top 25 preview, with predictions.

I'd like to thank the Padres for pitching to Pujols and the baseball for clearing the fence.

Clemens is in a perfect position to pull the same stunt again next year. McLane is scared of the backlash that previous ownership got when Nolan Ryan went to the Rangers that he will let Roger do what Roger wants to do at the expense of "being a champion."

Not to mention that Clemons had a financial interest in two out of the three minor league starts he made. Isn't he part owner of most of the Astros farm system? Good thing he likes spending time with his family. He'll have plenty of free time in Oct.

Oh shut up Geof. Notre Dame shouldn't even be top 15. They should have lost that MSU game on Saturday. And, while beating Wisconsin isn't anything to sneeze at, that's not exactly a win that gives you a jump in the rankings.

There is no doubt in my mind that Clemons is in a better position this off season then he was last off season and the reason is the Boston Red Sox.

Their pitching staff stunk this year and there is a VERY good chance that Theo and the Trio will throw every dollar in Boston towards the Rocket this offseason just giving him a better chance to get a huge deal from McLean who as we already learned is afraid as all hell to let Roger go.

I think this will be an even bigger circus this season then it was last off season.

Maybe the Braves are warning the Mets, "Uneasy lies the head that wears the (division) crown."

Wang has easily been the Yanks' best pitcher, and he pitches better at the Stadium....so then the only question would be how he fares under the lights of a game 5...against, say....Johan.

Poor Fox, you know they'll be putting all Yankees and Mets games in the 8 pm slot....one but one of their 4 first home games over the three days Tues. to Thurs. will have to be shifted to the afternoon....so which team (my money's on the Mets here) gets to finish its playoff game before midnight by getting the 4 pm start for game two?

Oh shut up? What has Florida done that is impressive. Barely beat a so-so Tennessee team and then played a bunch of horrible teams. Yeah, those aren't exactly wins that give you a jump in the rankings.

I hope that the Cards/Astros are within a half game of each other to end the season. This will force the Cards to play a make-up game with the Giants. Cards win and their in. Think the Giants will send their A-Team to St. Louis?

Why even discuss the NL? It won't matter what teams in the NL make the playoffs. Not one of them can beat any of the AL teams in the playoffs in a seven game series. Not even a chance. That wouldn't change if the Angels or White Sox made it in either.

(Stolen from Short Hops at ESPN)ESPN's Peter Gammons won at the Boston Music Awards on Wednesday night. Gammons was named "Best Blues Act" at the annual BMAs held at The Avalon on Lansdowne Street in Boston. The award went to "Peter Gammons and the Hot Stove All-Stars," his band. His CD "Never Slow Down, Never Grow Old" debuted in July.

Gee, thanks for the BYU love, Shanoff. The Cougars have outplayed every opposing team statistically this year -- but for a few mistakes and a handful of injuries, this game could very well be a matchup of unbeatens. Having said that, TCU is the better team and will probably win. (And may they represent our conference well and repeat Utah's BCS-busting feat.) But BYU won't make it easy for them.

As a Philly fan of both Iggles and the Fightins the last few weeks have surely chopped a year or two off my life with the Eagles Giants and the Phils not being able to hold a lead going towards the end of the games.

(1) Wells turned down an offer of 5Y/$36M to stay with the Kings, a playoff team, to take a 2Y/$5M offer to go to the Rockets, a non-playoff team. Get a new agent, man.

He fired his agent who got him offered the 5 year, his new one got him this one. It's really a one year deal, he just waited so long to get a deal done that there was no money left, and it was take a short deal or become this year's Sprewell.

The Rocket's missed the playoffs with injuries. If T-MAc and Yao come back healthy and YAo plays the same way he did after his toe surgery and the additions of Battier, V-Span, Snyder, and now Wells Houston will be a force in the west.

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DanShanoff.com is a sports-blog spin-off of my long-time ESPN.com column, "The Daily Quickie." Anchored by an early-morning post of must-know topics, the blog is updated frequently throughout the day with new posts and user comments.